1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates to a method of making a conductive film, and particularly to a method of making a transparent conductive film.
2. Description of Related Art
A transparent conductive film has a characteristic of high electrical conductivity, low electrical resistance and good light penetrability. Since Baedeker's first report of transparent conductive film in 1907, in which the transparent conductive film is prepared by thermal oxidation of sputtered Cd film, attention is paid to the research and development of the transparent conductive film. Nowadays, the transparent conductive film has been widely used in liquid crystal display (LCD), touch panel, electrochromic devices and airplane windows.
The conventional methods for forming the transparent conductive film include vacuum evaporation method and magnetron sputtering method. The drawbacks of these methods include complicated equipment, high cost and being not suitable for mass production. Furthermore, these methods need a process of high-temperature annealing, which will damage a substrate on which the transparent conductive film is formed, whereby a substrate with a low melting point cannot be used for forming the film. Thus, the conventional methods have their limitations.
The conventionally used transparent conductive film is an Indium-Tin oxide (ITO) thin film, which has a high electrical conductivity and a high transparency. Since the ITO is solid at room temperature, it can be easily etched to obtain a predetermined pattern. The method of patterning the ITO thin film is as follows. Firstly, depositing the ITO thin film on the substrate by the vacuum evaporation method or magnetron sputtering method, and then forming the ITO thin film with the pattern by ion plasma etching. The etching process for forming the predetermined pattern requires the ion plasma with a high energy, which is costly and needs a complicated equipment to carry out. Furthermore, the high energy accompanies with a high temperature, which is not suitable for the substrate with a low melting point. Additionally, since the patterning process needs using a strongly alkaline solution and HF solution to pre-treat and post-treat the ITO thin film, the process unavoidably will cause pollution to the environment.
What is needed, therefore, is a method of making a transparent conductive film which does not have the disadvantages of the conventional art.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate at least one embodiment of the present method of making transparent conductive film, in one form, and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.